John Lander

Who was John Lander?

John Lander was the younger brother of Cornish explorer Richard Lemon Lander and accompanied him on his first expedition to western Africa.

The Lander brothers were sons of a Truro innkeeper. While Richard went to sea at a young age, John learned the printing trade.

In 1830 the brothers went on an expedition to determine the course of the Niger River. They landed at Badagry in present-day Nigeria, took Clapperton's route to Bussa, then ascended the river for 160 kilometres before descending to explore the Benue River and the Niger Delta. They returned to Britain in 1831.

Richard returned to the Niger in 1832, but John took a job in a London customs house instead. He died some years later, of a disease he had contracted in Africa.